JP4206359B2 - Treatment liquid supply device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid-saving processing solution used for wet processing such as cleaning, etching, development, and peeling for single-wafer substrates such as liquid crystal panels and other display panels and glass substrates used for various applications. The present invention relates to an improvement of a supply device.

  In Patent Document 1, an introduction passage 10 having an introduction hole 7 and a discharge passage 12 having a discharge port 15 are formed, and the introduction passage 10 and the discharge passage 12 are crossed at each other end to form an intersection 14. The nozzle structure 50 formed and provided with the opening 6 that opens toward the workpiece 1 at the intersection 14 and the wet processing liquid that has contacted the workpiece 1 through the opening 6 are subjected to the wet treatment. A wet processing apparatus is proposed which is provided with pressure control means 13 for controlling the difference between the pressure of the wet processing liquid in contact with the workpiece 1 and the atmospheric pressure so as not to flow outside the discharge passage 12. Yes.

Patent Document 2 describes a single wafer cleaning device having a basic structure in common with the wet processing device described in Patent Document 1, and further includes one or more support rolls above the lower housing (30B). Proposing (39) to support the glass substrate in the unit has been proposed.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-163153 JP 2002-280340 A

  In patent document 2, the bending of the glass substrate conveyed by the support roll in a unit is controlled. However, as a result of providing the support roll inside the cleaning unit, it is considered that abrasion powder (particles) is generated due to friction rotation with the bearing portion due to rotation of the support roll. However, the cleaning effect may be impaired.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a liquid drainage path is formed at the bottom of a concave portion to which a support roller is attached, and particles generated inside are extracted together with a processing liquid and the like, and suitable for processing on a substrate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a processing liquid supply apparatus that can be used in the above.

The invention according to claim 1 is an upper liquid that is provided on one side of the upper ceiling plate facing the upper surface of the substrate passing therethrough and in the substrate transport direction of the upper ceiling plate, and supplies the processing liquid to the lower surface side of the upper ceiling plate. An upper processing section provided on the supply path section and on the other side and provided with an upper liquid discharge path section that sucks and discharges the supplied processing liquid from the lower surface side of the upper ceiling plate, and is disposed opposite to the upper processing section. A lower ceiling plate facing the lower surface of the substrate passing therethrough, a lower liquid supply passage portion provided on one side of the lower ceiling plate in the substrate transport direction and supplying a processing liquid to the upper surface side of the lower ceiling plate, and the other A processing liquid supply apparatus comprising: a lower processing section provided on a side; and a lower processing section provided with a lower liquid discharge passage section that sucks and discharges the supplied processing liquid from the upper surface side of the lower ceiling board. , and the recess of required number formed on the upper surface, this And a rotary support upper end rotatably mounted to the support axis at a height position projecting from the upper surface of the lower ceiling plate in the recess, the recess is drained path is formed at the bottom thereof It is characterized by being.

  According to this configuration, with the recent increase in the size of the substrate to be processed (for example, 1300 mm in length and 1100 mm in width), the front end side of the substrate that has been transported into the apparatus or the rear end side of the substrate when it is removed from the apparatus In addition, when the central portion is located in the apparatus, the central portion may be bent downward and come into contact with the lower ceiling plate. Since the substrate surface is not damaged due to contact, the substrate quality is maintained, and the substrate can be accurately maintained between the upper processing portion and the lower processing portion, so that the liquid processing is also effectively performed.

  Further, even if particles are generated by the rotation of the rotating support at the bottom of the recess to which the rotating support is attached, the particles are extracted together with the processing liquid through the liquid drainage path formed at the bottom of the recess. For this reason, particles do not adhere to the lower surface of the substrate being processed, and the substrate processing is suitably performed.

The invention according to claim 2 is the processing liquid supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recess is a notch formed in the lower ceiling plate, and the rotary support is supported by the notch. It is rotatably supported by a support shaft parallel to the width direction, and the drainage path is a small hole formed downward from the bottom of the notch. According to this arrangement, the rotary support rotates around the support shaft, for conveying the support of the board. Even if particles are generated by the rotation of the rotating support during the conveyance, the particles are extracted from a small hole formed at the bottom of the notch.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the treatment liquid supply apparatus according to the first or second aspect, a predetermined number of the recesses are provided in the width direction and a predetermined number in the transport direction. . According to this configuration, since the required number of rotation supports are provided in the width direction and the conveyance direction, bending is restricted on the entire surface of the substrate.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the processing liquid supply device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the liquid draining path communicates with a common path formed in the lower processing section. It is a feature. According to this configuration, even when a plurality of rotation supports, that is, a plurality of drainage paths are formed, the common path can drain the liquid in one line.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the treatment liquid supply apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the support shaft is supplied with a cleaning liquid that is extended to an outer peripheral surface facing an inner peripheral surface of the rotary support. A hole is formed. According to this configuration, even if particles are generated by frictional rotation between the rotating support and the support shaft, the particles are effectively extracted from the drainage path by the cleaning liquid.

A sixth aspect of the present invention is the treatment liquid supply apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the rotary support has an outer peripheral surface formed in a spindle shape. Is. According to this configuration, the contact damage to the substrate is reduced as the contact area with the substrate is reduced.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, even when particles are generated due to the rotation operation of the rotary support, the particles can be extracted together with the processing liquid through the liquid drainage path formed at the bottom of the recess. Therefore, the adhesion of particles to the lower surface of the substrate being processed can be prevented, and the substrate processing can be suitably performed.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the generated particles can be extracted from the small hole formed in the bottom of the notch.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the required number of the rotation supports are provided in the width direction and the conveyance direction, it is possible to restrict the deflection of the entire surface of the substrate.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, even when a plurality of rotation supports, that is, a plurality of liquid discharge paths are formed, liquid can be drained by a single line by the common path.

  According to invention of Claim 5, the particle | grains which generate | occur | produced by the friction rotation between the rotation support body and the support shaft can be effectively extracted from the drain passage by the cleaning liquid for that purpose.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the rotary support since the reduced contact with the spindle shape to board, it is possible to suppress the contact substrate damage.

  FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing an embodiment of a processing liquid supply apparatus according to the present invention. The processing liquid supply apparatus 1 is provided in the middle of the conveyance path 50 of the glass substrate GB, and has a substrate path having a predetermined gap for loading and unloading the substrate with respect to the conveyance path 50 at the center in the vertical direction and facing the upper and lower sides. This is a liquid recovery (liquid-saving) type nozzle device including an upper processing unit 10 and a lower processing unit 20 that are disposed. In the present embodiment, description will be made assuming that a cleaning process using pure water or the like is performed as a liquid process.

  In the present embodiment, the upper processing unit 10 has a rectangular parallelepiped housing 11, and the lower portion of the housing 11 is composed of a ceiling plate 12 facing the substrate GB being transported with a predetermined minute gap. . Further, a liquid supply path 13 is provided at an appropriate position on the side plate on the downstream side in the transport direction of the casing 11, and a liquid discharge path 14 is provided on the appropriate position on the side plate on the upstream side in the transport direction. The required number of liquid supply paths 13 and liquid discharge paths 14 are arranged to face each other in the width direction (the depth direction in FIG. 1). The height positions of the lower end openings of the liquid supply path 13 and the liquid discharge path 14 are set so as to be substantially flush with the lower surface of the ceiling plate 12.

  The liquid supply path 13 is communicated with a cleaning liquid tank via a pressure pump (not shown), while the liquid discharge path 14 is communicated with a recovery tank via a pressure reduction pump (not shown). With this configuration, when the substrate GB to be cleaned is transported into the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 by the rollers 51 and 52 of the transport path 50 in the processing liquid supply apparatus 1, the pressure pump and the decompression pump are driven. The cleaning liquid is supplied to the minute gap between the lower surface of the substrate GB and the ceiling plate 12 from the front end side of the substrate GB being transferred. While the supplied cleaning liquid spreads on the lower surface of the substrate GB, a flow toward the liquid discharge path 14 is sucked upstream by the negative pressure generated around the lower opening of the liquid discharge path 14 on the upstream side in the transport direction by the decompression pump. And sucked out. The positive pressure level by the pressurization pump and the negative pressure level by the decompression pump are almost the same as the cleaning liquid supplied from the liquid supply path 13 between the ceiling plate 12 and the upper surface of the substrate GB without leaking to the side. It is set to be aspirated. The pressure pump and the pressure reducing pump can each be adjusted in pressure by a pump driving unit (not shown). In this way, the cleaning effect is further enhanced by flowing the cleaning liquid in the direction opposite to the transport direction of the substrate GB.

  The lower processing unit 20 has basically the same upside down structure as the upper processing unit 10. That is, the lower processing unit 20 has a rectangular parallelepiped casing 21, and the upper portion of the casing 21 is configured by a ceiling plate 22 that faces the substrate GB being transferred with a predetermined minute gap. Further, a liquid supply path 23 is provided at an appropriate position on the side plate on the downstream side in the transport direction of the housing 21, and a liquid discharge path 24 is provided on the appropriate position on the side plate on the upstream side in the transport direction. The required number of partial liquid supply paths 23 and partial liquid discharge paths 24 are arranged to face each other in the width direction (the depth direction in FIG. 1). The height positions of the upper end openings of the liquid supply path 23 and the liquid discharge path 24 are set to be substantially flush with the upper surface of the ceiling plate 22.

  Similar to the upper processing unit 10, the liquid supply path 23 is communicated with the cleaning liquid tank via a pressure pump (not shown), while the liquid discharge path 24 is communicated with the recovery tank via a pressure reduction pump (not shown). ing. With this configuration, when the substrate GB to be cleaned is transported into the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 by the rollers 51 and 52 of the transport path 50 in the processing liquid supply apparatus 1, the pressure pump and the decompression pump are driven. The cleaning liquid is supplied to the minute gap between the upper surface of the substrate GB and the ceiling plate 22 from the front end side of the substrate GB being transferred. The flow of the cleaning liquid is the same as that of the upper processing unit 10. The substrate GB that has passed through the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 is further transported downstream via the roller 53 of the transport path 50 on the downstream side.

  A support roller 30 is disposed on the ceiling plate 22 of the lower processing unit 20 as a rotation support for supporting a required number of substrates. In FIG. 1, four are arranged substantially evenly in the transport direction, and are further arranged in the width direction for the required rows. The size of the substrate GB to be processed is increased, and accordingly, the size of the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 in the transport direction is increased from the viewpoint of improving the processing efficiency. Then, the roller 52 and the roller 53 of the transport path 50 are increased. Since the distance becomes longer, there is a possibility that the front end side of the substrate GB that has passed through the roller 52 bends downward due to its own weight, and that the front end touches the ceiling plate 22 and damages the substrate surface. In addition, the same problem occurs in the rear side of the substrate GB and also in the central portion of the substrate GB. The support roller 30 supports and conveys the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 while restricting the downward bending of the substrate GB. The support roller 30 is driven to rotate around an axis parallel to the width direction.

  At least one support roller 30 may be disposed at a substantially intermediate position in the transport direction of the processing liquid supply device 1 in the transport direction, but the transport direction dimension of the processing liquid supply device 1 or the length size of the substrate GB to be processed. The required number (four in this embodiment) is set in accordance with the degree of bending depending on the thickness and material. A liquid draining path 40 is formed below each support roller 30. Although not shown in the drawing, the liquid draining path 40 is communicated with a recovery tank via a suction pump, and this suction pump is driven during substrate processing.

  FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a support roller and its mounting structure, where (a) shows the first embodiment and (b) shows the second embodiment.

  In FIG. 2A, the support roller 30 is loaded in a recess (attachment hole) 221 formed on the upper surface side of the ceiling plate 22. The recess 221 has an accommodation space of a required size, and a rotating shaft 31 that pivotally supports the support roller 30 on both side walls positioned in the width direction (the depth direction in FIG. 2) of the surrounding side walls. The bearing part 222 which horizontally supports is formed. The rotary shaft 31 can be inserted and removed along an insertion guide groove extending from the upper end of the both side walls to the bearing portion 222. The bottom 223 of the recess 221 has a substantially horizontal surface, the center thereof is formed in a tapered shape downward, and a small-diameter drain hole 224 having a required cross-sectional area extending downward is formed in the lower end thereof. Although not shown in the drawing, the lower end side of the liquid drain hole 224 communicates with the liquid drain path 40 shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 2, the ceiling plate 22 has a two-layer structure, and the upper layer plate 22 a laid after the support roller 30 is inserted closes the insertion guide groove, whereby the rotating shaft 31 is received. Further, an edge for narrowing the opening of the recess 221 is formed on the upper surface side of the upper layer plate 22a, and the opening area of the recess 221 is narrowed to more effectively suppress the diffusion of particles.

  The support roller 30 is supported by the rotary shaft 31 at a height position at which a part of the outer peripheral surface is exposed from the upper surface of the ceiling plate 22.

  According to this configuration, the lower surface side of the substrate GB carried into the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 is supported by the support rollers 30, and is not bent downward to come into contact with the ceiling plate 22. The support roller 30 is driven by the transport force of the substrate GB, and smoothly transfers the substrate GB. Even if particles or the like are generated due to frictional rotation with the rotating shaft 31 of the support roller 30, the particles are sucked by a suction pump (not shown) through the liquid drain hole 224, and the liquid drain hole 224 and liquid drain Since it is collected in the collection tank together with the cleaning liquid through the path 40, it does not go around the top surface of the ceiling plate 22 and mix with the cleaning liquid being cleaned, thereby reducing the cleaning effect and damaging the back surface of the substrate GB.

  The mounting structure of the support roller 30 shown in FIG. 2B is basically the same as that shown in FIG. That is, a concave portion (mounting hole) 221 for loading the support roller 30 is formed on the upper surface side of the ceiling plate 22, and both side walls located in the width direction of the concave portion 221 (the depth direction in FIG. 2) A bearing portion 222 that horizontally supports the rotating shaft 32 that pivotally supports the support roller 30 is formed, and an insertion guide groove for inserting and removing the rotating shaft 32 from the upper end of the both side walls to the bearing portion 222 is formed. Has been. The bottom 223 of the recess 221 is a substantially horizontal plane, and a small-diameter drain hole 224 extending downward is formed in the center thereof.

  The support roller 30 has an outer peripheral width dimension that is a required short dimension. In particular, the center of the support roller 30 is formed in a spindle shape (convex shape) in the width direction. Since the contact area with the substrate GB is reduced by this spindle shape, the contact damage of the substrate can be reduced. This spindle shape can be similarly applied to the support roller 30 shown in FIG.

  In the wall thickness of the ceiling plate 22, a liquid hole 225 that connects the bearing portion 222 and the outside (the side surface or the lower surface side of the ceiling plate 22) is formed. Further, a concentric liquid hole 321 is formed in the shaft of the rotating shaft 32 to the middle in the longitudinal direction, and a penetrating fluid hole 322 passing through the center in the radial direction is formed at the middle position in the longitudinal direction of the rotating shaft 32. Yes. Accordingly, the liquid hole 321 and the penetrating liquid hole 322 communicate with each other, and the liquid hole 225 of the ceiling plate 22 and the liquid hole 321 of the rotating shaft communicate with each other. As a result, the liquid hole 225 and the penetrating liquid hole 322 communicate with each other. . Although not shown in the drawing, the liquid hole 225 is connected to the cleaning liquid tank via a supply pump on the external opening side. By driving the supply pump, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the inner peripheral wall surface of the support roller 30. The injection supply is possible.

  According to this configuration, as in the case of FIG. 2A, the substrate GB carried into the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 is supported on the lower surface side by the support roller 30, bent downward, and comes into contact with the ceiling plate 22. Nothing will happen. The support roller 30 is driven by the transport force of the substrate GB, and smoothly transfers the substrate GB. Even if particles or the like are generated due to frictional rotation with the rotating shaft 32 of the support roller 30, the particles are sucked through the liquid draining hole 224 and collected in the recovery tank together with the cleaning liquid via the liquid draining path 40. Therefore, it does not go around the upper surface of the ceiling plate 22 and mix with the cleaning liquid being cleaned, thereby reducing the cleaning effect and damaging the back surface of the substrate GB. Further, since the cleaning liquid is jetted and supplied from the liquid hole 322 to the inner peripheral wall surface of the support roller 30, even if particles are generated by friction rotation with the rotation shaft 32, the particles are more effectively washed off. be able to. In addition, after the substrate processing is completed, it is possible to clean the inner peripheral side wall of the support roller 30 to which the processing liquid is attached, and the attached processing liquid (the processing liquid is not a cleaning water but a chemical solution is used). In particular, it is possible to effectively prevent the adhesion of the crystal and the like due to drying, and the smooth rotation of the support roller 30 can be ensured over a long period of time.

  3 is a partially cutaway front view showing a specific embodiment of the processing liquid supply apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway side view of the processing liquid supply apparatus shown in FIG. 3 and 4, only the components related to the support roller 30 are shown for convenience of explanation, and the omitted portions are basically the same as those in FIG. 1.

  In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the length of the processing liquid supply apparatus 1 in the substrate transport direction is about 400 mm, the size of the substrate to be processed is about 1300 mm in length, and about 1100 mm in width. A total of 30 30 are arranged, with 6 at regular intervals in the transport direction and 5 at approximately regular intervals in the width direction. The support roller 30 is made of a resin material such as high molecular polyethylene as a material, and preferably a resin material having chemical resistance is used. The shape is about 20 mm in diameter and the width is about 7 mm. The thing is adopted. The drain hole 224 has a diameter of about 1 to 2 mm. The liquid drain holes 224 drilled in the bottom of each recess 221 communicate with each other through the common path 226 (five) in the transport direction, and further, at a proper position in the transport direction, preferably at a substantially central position in the transport direction. It is connected to the extraction path 40. The liquid draining path 40 is preferably bundled as one as shown in FIG. 3 and communicated with the recovery tank via an external suction pump so that the liquid in the recess 221 can be recovered in the recovery tank.

  In addition, the following aspects can be employ | adopted for this invention.

  (1) Although a support roller having a short outer periphery is used as the rotation support, a roller having a certain length may be used instead. In this case, contact damage can be alleviated by forming a plurality of spindle portions intermittently (partially) in the width direction. Moreover, as a rotation support body, not only a roller and a roller but the structure which circulates a small endless belt may be sufficient. Further, the support roller is not limited to the spindle shape, and may be a flat roller depending on the material or the type of the target substrate to be processed.

  (2) The arrangement of the support rollers is a matrix in the width direction and the conveyance direction, but is not limited to this arrangement, and may be a staggered arrangement. In order to support the substrate in a balanced manner, it is preferable to arrange it symmetrically with respect to the width direction.

  (3) In the present embodiment, it has been described that particles are generated due to rotational friction between the support roller 30 and the rotation shaft 31, that is, the rotation shaft 31 does not rotate. However, the support roller 30 and the rotation shaft 31 are integrated, and the bearing portion. The present invention can be similarly applied to a mode in which the rotation shaft 31 rotates with respect to 222.

  (4) In the present embodiment, the description has been given on the case where the concave portion 221 is provided in the ceiling plate 22 so as to house (interior) the support roller 30. A mode in which a box having a roller accommodating space is fitted into the ceiling plate 22 may be employed.

  (5) The penetrating liquid holes 322 drilled in the rotating shaft 32 are opened on both outer peripheral surfaces, but may be opened on only one side, or may be opened on three at 120 degrees. Furthermore, the aspect provided with two or more in a longitudinal direction may be sufficient.

  (6) Although the support roller 30 has been described as a driven type, a mode in which a drive source is provided to positively convey the substrate may be employed.

  (7) The connection position between the liquid drain hole 224 and the liquid drain path 40 may be a substantially central position of the communication path 226 and may be directly below the liquid drain hole 224.

It is side surface sectional drawing which shows one Embodiment of the process liquid supply apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows a support roller and its attachment structure, (a) shows 1st Embodiment, (b) shows 2nd Embodiment. It is a partially notched front view which shows the specific one form of the process liquid supply apparatus which concerns on this invention. FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway side view of the processing liquid supply apparatus shown in FIG. 3.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Process liquid supply apparatus 10 Lower process part 20 Upper process part 11, 21 Case 12, 22 Ceiling board 13, 23 Liquid supply path 14, 24 Liquid discharge path 30 Support roller 31, 32 Rotating shaft (support shaft)
221 Concave part 222 Bearing part 223 Bottom part 224 Liquid drainage path 225 Liquid hole 226 Common path 321 Liquid hole 322 Through liquid hole 40 Liquid drainage path

Claims (6)

An upper ceiling plate facing the upper surface of the substrate passing therethrough, provided on one side of the upper ceiling plate in the substrate transport direction, and an upper liquid supply passage section for supplying processing liquid to the lower surface side of the upper ceiling plate, and on the other side An upper processing section provided with an upper liquid discharge passage section for sucking and discharging the supplied processing liquid from the lower surface side of the upper ceiling plate; and disposed on the lower surface of the substrate passing through the upper processing section. The lower ceiling plate facing the lower ceiling plate is provided on one side of the lower ceiling plate in the substrate transport direction, the lower liquid supply passage portion supplying the processing liquid to the upper surface side of the lower ceiling plate, and the other side provided and supplied. In a processing liquid supply apparatus comprising: a lower processing section provided with a lower liquid discharge passage section that sucks and discharges the processed liquid from the upper surface side of the lower ceiling plate;
The lower ceiling plate, and the recess of the required number formed on the upper surface, the upper end in the recess and a rotatably mounted rotary support the supporting axis at a height position projecting from the upper surface of the lower ceiling plate the a, in the recess, the process liquid supply apparatus characterized by the liquid discharge path is formed in the bottom thereof.   The recess is a notch formed in the lower ceiling plate, and the rotary support is rotatably supported by a support shaft that is supported by the notch and is parallel to the width direction. The processing liquid supply device according to claim 1, wherein the processing liquid supply device is a small hole formed downward from the bottom of the notch.   The processing liquid supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a predetermined number of the recesses are provided in the width direction and a predetermined number in the transport direction. Said liquid vent passage, the processing liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that communicates with the common path formed in the lower section. The support shaft, the processing liquid according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said rotary support cleaning liquid supply hole which is extended to the outer peripheral surface opposed to the inner peripheral surface of the are formed Feeding device. It said rotary support, the processing liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the outer peripheral surface and is formed in a spindle shape.

Images